Worlds of Confusion
by Vicki1
Summary: What do you get when you cross a bounty hunter, an outlaw, a human typhoon, and the greatest thief to ever live? One wild and crazy crossover! Its Lupin the III meets Outlaw Star meets Cowboy Bebop meets Trigun! Sure, I might crash and burn with this o
1. Prologue

Yes, I am insane. I admit it. However, they do say insanity and genius are very closely related...

In any case,somehow Iplan tocram Outlaw Star, Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, and Lupin III into one massive crossover of hopefully epic proportions. Entire this will be utterly brilliant or a complete turd. Who knows? But hey, you only live once, right?

The following is a timeline that tries to make sense of all four series and put them in context with one another (warning: spoilers):

Please note: I don't own any of the series

1950s – Lupin III is born (death unknown)

1973 - Chess Master Hex born on Earth.

1977 - _Lupin III_ the series…

1994 -- August 14, Faye Valentine born on Earth.

2003 -- Chess Master Hex joins the Hyperspace Gate Control team.  
2007 -- A 13-year-old Faye records a Betamax message to her future (23-year-old) self.  
2008 -- Chess Master Hex develops the main program for controlling the hyperspace gates.  
2014 -- An orbital shuttle accident results in Faye being placed in cold sleep.

2015 -- Project Seeds begins its ten year project, after studies show that Earth will become unfriendly for human life by the early 2100s. The project's goal is to find a large planet where the human race can migrate to and settle, as research was indicating that the solar system would not be able to sustain the project 8.2 billion population of known humans existing on both earth and in the solar system.

2021 -- The Hyperspace Gate Accident destroys a large portion of the moon. Wen is exposed to the energy released by the Gate Accident and stops aging. Chess Master Hex puts his 50-year plan to sabotage the Hyperspace Gates into motion after the Gate Corporation runs him out of the company. Feng Shui master Pao Pu born.

2021—Project Seeds accelerates; survivors of the Gate Accident go into a cold sleep and leave Earth and its solar system to find a new planet and solar system to settle and inhabit.

2022 -- Most (if not all) data from before this point is lost due to the Gate Accident.

2022 – The crew of Project Seeds stumbles upon two alien babies (Vash and Knives) on a remote planet not suitable for human life.

2023 – Knives kills the crew of Project Seeds; Rem manages to save those in a cold sleep. The shuttles crash on a desert planet with two suns, soon to become known as Gunsmoke.

2034 – Knives completes his creation of two very powerful guns to destroy the human race; Knives and Vash split ways, Vash taking both guns.

2035 -- December 3, Jet Black born on Ganymede.

2036 – Vash befriends the citizens of Sky City.

2044 -- June 26, Spike Speigel born on Mars. Vicious born.  
2057 -- The last time the Blue Sox won the pennant.  
2058 -- January 1, Edward born on Earth (Likely a false birth date.).  
2061 -- Jet and Pao meet for the last time. Spike acquires the_ Swordfish II_ from Doohan.  
2062 -- Alisa leaves Jet.  
2063 -- Jet looses his left arm and leaves both the ISSP and Ganymede. This is also the last time Jet worked with his old partner, Fad.  
2064 -- Meifa taken from Pao Pu by her mother. Edward dropped off at daycare by her father (who then forgets she's there).  
2066 -- Edward arrives at the nun's orphanage.  
2068 -- Spike "dies," leaving the Red Dragon syndicate in the process. Faye is unthawed from cold sleep and saddled with a debt of over 300 million woolongs. Edward leaves the nun's orphanage. Jet and Spike become bounty hunter partners on the _Bebop._  
2069 -- Gren and Vicious serve in the military in the Titan conflict. Gren escapes from a military prison. Julia seen on Callisto (she leaves after a month). Ronny Spagen's medical accident reduces him to a catatonic state. The Scratch cult formed soon after. Ein born and/or grown.  
2070 -- Spike forgets a lobster in a storage fridge on the _Bebop._  
2071 -- _Cowboy Bebop_ the Series; Julia dies; Vicious dies; Spike…?

2116 -- Vash discovers one of Rem's relatives is residing in July City and goes out to meet him; Knives is there and activates Vash's angel arm; July City is destroyed. A bounty of sixty billion double dollars is placed on Vash the Stampede's head.

2139 – _Trigun _the series; Nicholas D. Wolfwood dies; Knives falls into a comatose state.

3550s – Human beings, having been exploring space for over the last millennium (_Cowboy Bebop_) have been advancing further and further away from Earth and it's solar system. At this point, humans begin settling what will become the frontier region, 50 light years away from Earth.

3642 – Gene Starwind is born in Locust on Sentinel III.

3656 – Gene Starwind goes up into space with his father; his father dies and he returns to Sentinel III.

3662 – _Outlaw Star _the series; Gene Starwind and crew find the Galatic Leyline.


	2. Chapter 1

_Gunsmoke, 2139_

The man in the red jacket lay almost perfectly still in the desolate desert, nothing in sight for miles in any direction except for sandy dunes. He was on his back, arms and legs sprawled out and motionless. The sky was without a single cloud, the suns bearing down on the defenseless land with severity. It was excruciatingly hot, a stuffy wind only occasionally whistling through the barren region. Beads of sweat dripped down the man's forehead, the suns' beaming harshly on his exposed face.

Gradually, the sleeping man began to open his eyes, slowly blinking a couple times as he stirred. His gaze first fell on the glowing sun directly above of him. _Where am I? The sun's so bright, _he groggily said to himself, closing his eyes for a moment before reopening them slightly again. Moving his glance from the intense sun above him, his eyes began to wander across the bright blue sky until they fell upon the second sun, a short distance away from the first one. _Huh…? _Disbelieving of his senses, the man quickly blinked his eyes, which widened with complete alertness as his vision focused on the two suns shining relentlessly down on him.

Immediately, the man in the red jacket sprung up, fully awake and eyes locked on the impossible marvel. _Two suns, _he thought,_ but that's impossible! _The sky above him, however, told him differently."Where the hell am I?" he shouted incredulously, his voice carrying across the desert and past the horizon.

For the life of him, Lupin III had not a single clue as to where he was.

Lupin III trekked across the sandy hills of Gunsmoke, trying to find an answer as to where he was, or at least some sign of life. As far as he could tell, there was only desert. He had slung his red blazer over his right shoulder, and his lanky body was slightly hunched over as he walked. It was growing later in the afternoon, the suns slowly making their way toward what Lupin assumed was the western horizon. What's more, a small wind had materialized, causing sand to blow against his body and face.

"Oh man," Lupin mumbled to himself, as he wiped his brow with the back of his left hand, "what in the hell happened to me? I remember being in Paris with the gang, but after that…" Sighing, Lupin slumped further, feeling the situation grow more and more bleak. He went on; "I can't remember a single thing after that. Everything's so fuzzy. Maybe I'm just dreaming…but it seems so real…" Growing frustrated, Lupin abruptly stopped, slammed his jacket to the ground, and exclaimed. "Damn it! Has the whole friggin' world gone insane!"

Lupin's outburst was brief, though, as he suddenly heard something – something approaching. _Hmm…? _Instinctively, Lupin went to reach for his gun, but before he could, there was the sound of a gun clicking behind him. A gruff voice, also from behind him, stated, "Don't move and drop your weapon," as a half a dozen men began to surround him on both sides, all with pistols pointed straight at Lupin III.

_Great, _Lupin thought, _where did these guys come from? _Playing along, Lupin dropped his gun, raised his hands up, and slowly spun around the face his attackers. The one who had spoken, which Lupin assumed was the leader of the group of bandits, was tall with a dark beard and long, scraggily hair. He was wearing a large cowboy hat and matching tan jacket. "Sorry fellows, but I seem to be a little lost," Lupin explained, "Maybe you can help me out?"

With a chuckle, the leader spit out his cigarette and smirked, "Sure, we'll help you out, stranger, for a price…"

"Sorry, but I don't seem to have any cash on me. I guess I'll just have to find my way on my own, then," Lupin said nonchalantly, as he went to lower his hands and turn to go.

Immediately, the bandits became focused with their pistols, and the leader snapped, "I told you not to move!"

"All right, all right," Lupin replied impatiently, raising his hands once more. _Now I know I must be dreaming, _he thought, _they all looked like they stepped out of the friggin' Wild West! Still, I suppose I should still try to figure out where the hell I am… _"So," Lupin began, "Where are we, anyway?"

"What do you mean, 'where are we?'" the leader replied, growing aggravated.

"Just that, Clinty; where are we? Call it a hunch, but I'm guessing this isn't Earth, with the two suns and all. And if it isn't Earth, then it's got to be some place else, right?"

With this, the bandits all began to look at each other with much puzzlement, as well as exchange whispers. The one closest to the leader drew near to him and said in a soft voice, "Hey, Buck, I don't know about this one…he's looks kind of funny and seems like he's a quack."

Growling, the leader, Buck, pushed his comrade to the ground, "Shut up!" He then turned his attention back to Lupin III and yelled, "You know damn well this here planet is Gunsmoke! And what do you mean by calling me Clinty, because I don't take too kindly to insults, understand?"

"You know, Clinty - as in Clint Eastwood?" Lupin tried to clarify; all he got in response was blank expressions, though. Sighing, he relinquished, "Oh, never mind…" He then continued, "So Gunsmoke, hey? That's kind of a crappy name for a planet. Anyway, how the hell do I get to Earth from here?"

"Are you insane?" a second bandit now spoke up, "Everyone knows there's no way back to Earth."

"No way back…?" Lupin repeated, mostly to himself as he pondered the statement.

"That's enough!" Buck now declared, infuriated, "I see what you're trying to do, but it won't work. We'll be stealing your personal effects, whether or not you try to confuse us with your talks of Earth."

Lupin smirked and said, "I kind of figured that. I've got to say, though, this is really one pathetic heist. Absolutely no class or finesse or style. It's quite a pity, really."

"Whatever you say, skinny," Buck now sneered, "I'm sure you know _so _much about it."

"You could say that…" Lupin's eyes narrowed as his smirk grew wider. His eyes wandered past Buck and his fellow bandits to a large pick-up truck – presumably theirs – in the near distance. _Perfect, _he thought.

"Whatever," Buck snorted and went on, "Why don't you just empty your pockets for us, stranger?" He then added, "And don't try anything funny, because I really won't have any trouble shooting you dead."

Lupin complied, slowly lowering his hands and slipping them into his pant pockets. From left one, he pulled out what looked like a small purplish marble. He rolled it down his index finger with his thumb and suddenly flicked it into the air in front of him. "Huh…?" Buck trailed off as the little marble went off with a flash, letting off a brilliant white light that blinded all those in the vicinity. When the light dissipated a few moments later, the bandits turned to see that Lupin III was no longer before them, surrounded by their cocked pistols. "Where in the hell did he go?" Buck demanded, enraged.

Suddenly, there was a blaring honk, and the bandits all turned to see Lupin III seated comfortably in the driver's seat of their pick-up truck. It had been too easy for the experienced thief; to him, they had all simply been amateurs at best. "Thanks for the ride, Clinty!" he called to them with a wave and a grin, "Catch ya later!" With that, he put the vehicle into drive and sped away, Buck and his comrades cursing him as he left.


	3. Chapter 2

Thanks for all the reviews! I'm sorry about forgetting the Cowboy Bebop Movie; that also occurs in 2071, and Vincent dies. I also believe I forgot to mention Hilda's death and Harry becoming one withRon's ship in 3662. Anyhow, thanks again and enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own anything...

_Gunsmoke, 2139 – 3 weeks earlier… _

"I wasn't supposed to die like this!" Nicholas D. Wolfwood uttered his last words before his body fell limp and cold and slumped against his cross. His spirit, ghostly and translucent, stumbled from his corpse and toward an amazing white light, falling to his knees in absolute awe. In the rays of holy luminosity stood a figure, which seemed so far and remote to Wolfwood compared to the earthly church. He stared intensely at the entity's profile; a beautiful woman with golden blonde hair and dressed in black. She stood staring into the distance, deep in thought, before turning slowly to Wolfwood, her golden locks falling elegantly around her face. As she did, the white light grew so intense that Wolfwood had to squint and turn his head away. Instinctively, he used his right arm to shield his eyes.

Slowly, the figure extended her right hand, reaching out to him. Curious and utterly mesmerized, Wolfwood began to raise his head to look at her and lowered his right arm to his side. His eyes gazed at her with uncertainty and wonder as he knelt before the being of beauty and strange divinity. Hesitantly, he held his arm out in front of him and took her hand in his. In a low whisper he asked, "A devil? Or an Angel?"

* * *

Wolfwood followed the woman through the white illumination, feeling very light as he seemed to almost glide along. However, he couldn't help but habitually look over his shoulder for his large cross, which he had been so used to carrying in life. Now, however, he didn't have such secular worries. And yet, he still missed some of it as his thoughts began to wander off to think of things of yesterday. A longing, a yearning, began to fill him. Yet, as soon as it did, a strange warmth took its place; it seemed to reassure him, comfort him. He closed his eyes as if trying to listen for something, although he wasn't really expecting to actually hear a voice. Soon, his eyes fluttered open, and he saw the young woman still walking quite a distance in front of him, leading the way. _But to where?_, Wolfwood wondered. She hadn't spoken to him yet, and Wolfwood was growing unnerved. Clearing his throat, he called out to her, "Who are you? You haven't told me your name."

She stopped and turned to him. "Julia." They continued onward.

"Pretty name…so…are you an, uh…" he trailed off, waiting for a response. There was none, so he went on and bluntly asked, "You know, an angel? Are you one of those? Or are you…" he gulped and averted his attention to his feet.

"No, not an angel. But not a devil, either."

"Ok…" Wolfwood scratched the back of his head, "Now I'm confused. If you're neither devil nor angel, then what are you? A ghost or something? Hey, wait a minute! What happened to Almighty God and Heaven and all that junk? You know, all the stuff I spent most of my life preaching about! It's got to be real…isn't it? Please, tell me it's not all just a lie! Not just one big lie!" He reached out to her and grabbed her by her shoulders with desperation. Julia smiled at him her beautiful smile.

"Don't worry; God has sent me to you, but I'm not yet an angel. Does that make you feel better?" He released her, feeling slightly embarrassed for his lack of faith.

"Yes, yes it does," he answered her. "But…you're not an angel…?" he inquired quizzically.

"Not yet. It takes time and I have only been dead for today."

Wolfwood's jaw dropped open in shock. "You mean-"

"I was killed a few hours ago, in the year 2071."

"2071?" Wolfwood exclaimed, "But that doesn't make any sense! That was over sixty years ago!"

"You'll soon learn that such concepts of time are irrelevant once you leave the mortal realm…" Julia explained.

"Oh…" Wolfwood conceded, although a bit confused by the notion, and changed the subject; "So, you were killed?" They began walking again.

"Yes." She paused for a moment in reflection before continuing, "But that doesn't matter much now, does it?"

"I guess not…" He agreed, as they fell in to an awkward silence. He studied her more carefully. She seemed so mysterious to him. Growing edgy by the unsettling quiet, he decided to speak up. "So, when do I get to meet the Big Guy?" She let out a soft laugh.

"Not yet," she told him, "First –" Suddenly, they seemed to step outside the whiteness, leaving its serenity behind them. Soon after, the luminosity dimmed and disappeared entirely, and Wolfwood found him outside the church where he had just died, Julia was by his side. Both suns bore down on them, the sky bright and blue. Yet, Wolfwood wasn't hot. Turning to his companion, she didn't appear uncomfortable either, although she was dressed in a black sweater turtleneck and black leather pants.

"What are we doing back here?" Wolfwood questioned, "What's going on?"

"There's been a mistake, Nicholas. That's why I've been sent to you – so that we may fix it."

"A…mistake…?" Wolfwood shook his head, growing frustrated, "I don't understand what you're talking about!"

"But you do," Julia stated calmly as she turned to face him. "You even suggested it yourself."

"Huh?" He stared at her intensely, as well as with much inquisitiveness and bafflement. Sighing, Julia looked away, averting her gaze to the sky, the suns rays lighting up her face and golden hair. Then, after a moment, she told him simply:

"You weren't supposed to die today."


	4. Chapter 3

Sorry for taking so long to update - document manager was being buggy! Anyhow, this chapter is 3 weeks after Chapter 2, meaning it's at the same time as Chapter 1, or when Lupin just arrived in Gunsmoke. Just thought I'd clarify, in case it was confusing. Thanks to all the readers!

Disclaimer - I don't own anything...

_Gunsmoke, 2139 – 3 weeks later _

Lupin the III had parked his new pick-up truck - the beat up old thing only making him long for his luxury cars back home - on top of a sandy hill, which overlooked a small town below. Further in the distance was a larger town, but not by much. _Well_, Lupin thought, _it's certainly not Paris, in any case_, and then exclaimed, "Man, am I thirsty!" as he slumped in his seat for a moment. Sighing, he turned to the glove compartment and opened it, dumping all that was inside it on the passenger seat. It didn't take long for him to find what he was looking for; he snatched the map of Gunsmoke and unfolded it in front of him, lying it across the wheel. However, he quickly realized that the map wasn't much use to him, as he had no bearings whatsoever.

"Tonim City…December City…May City…August City…" He read out loud to himself, smirking slightly and adding sarcastically, "Months – how quaint." Yet, upon studying August City further, he frowned. _A red "x"…?_, he wondered,_ That's weird._ Soon, his gaze fell onto a larger red "x" written jaggedly across the city of July.

Out of the corner of his eye, Lupin then noticed a crumpled up poster of sorts among the other papers and things. With curiosity, he pulled it out and looked at it. It read, "Wanted: Vash the Stampede, for the destruction of July City. Reward: $$60 Billion." Lupin's expression became skeptical as he thought, _one man can't destroy an entire city…or two, as it looks by this map. _Before he could think much longer on it, though, something else caught his eye – a flat, shiny, round object. Grabbing it, he popped open it's gold cover to reveal what Lupin assumed to be a compass of sorts. Comparing it with the directional key provided on the map, Lupin finally began to get a better sense as to where he was.

"That must be LR town," Lupin reasoned, glancing several times from the map to the larger town in the distance. "Then that must be…hmm…" Lupin frowned severely. "Absolutely nothing," he concluded bluntly, as he couldn't find any marking for the small village on the map. "Great…" the thief muttered as he tossed the map aside. "I'm really beginning to hate this place."

He leaned back in the driver's seat and rested his eyes for a moment. Opening them once more, he eyed the "wanted poster" with a curious eye. "Vash the Stampede…"

* * *

Vash the Stampede sat by himself in the only saloon in the small town just a few iles away from its closest neighbor, LR town. For almost three weeks, the inhabitants of that small town had been buzzing with excitement, as they had just recently struck water. Almost immediately after doing so, the town began acquiring such prosperity that it was starting to rival that of LR town. Yet amongst all the happy commotion, Vash looked positively petrified from his table in the corner, hunched over and very quiet. For the last three days, he had been avoiding both Millie and Meryl, as well as those he had befriended in the town. 

"Here's your drink like you asked for, Vash, sir," the waitress said, placing it on his table. "Are you sure you're all right? You look as if you've seen a ghost."

Vash laughed nervously, his face pale as beads of sweat formed on his forehead, "No, no, of course not. I haven't seen any ghosts, because ghosts aren't real…" He laughed nervously again, turning from her and swallowing all of his drink in one gulp.

"You shouldn't drink so fast; you'll get sick," the waitress explained with worry.

"I'm fine…" Vash trailed off, "Please, get me another one."

"All right…" the waitress said awkwardly, obviously unconvinced before leaving Vash alone in his table.

Suddenly, the double doors of the saloon flung open and in strolled a very angry man, followed by his cohorts. Walking straight to the bar, he slammed his hand on the table and declared, "I'm looking for a man in a red jacket – where is he?"

Vash perked up immediately at this and exclaimed, "Normalcy!" before springing to his feet to greet the man. "I'm sorry to interrupt gentlemen, but I couldn't happen but overhear that you are looking for a man in a red jacket. Well, I happen to be that man, Vash the Stampede. I know you all must be very interested in chasing me down, considering I have such a large bounty on my head, but if you would all just –"

"We're not interested in you!" the leader snapped, much to Vash's shock.

"What..?"

"We're looking for another man in a red jacket."

"Another man?"

"Yeah, have you seen him? We know he's here, as someone told us they saw him driving _our _pick-up truck."

"No, I haven't seen him," Vash replied.

"Then stop wasting my time."

At this, Vash grew desperate, "But, don't you want to try and get the $$60 billion reward? Surely you want to kill me!" He clung to the man's shoulders in despair.

"This has to do with a man's honor," the leader explained, before signaling to his cohorts to leave. Vash fell back, leaning against the bar. _How can there be another man in a red jacket?_, he thought to himself, _It's impossible! I'm the man in the red jacket that everyone's after! What is going on?_

"Vash, you don't look well at all!" the waitress from before declared running to his side.

"I have to go…" Vash said, rising to his feet and slowly making his way to the exit.

"But wait!" the waitress called after him as he left, "You didn't pay for your drinks!"

* * *

Vash walked hastily down the street of the town and away from the saloon, passing by townspeople finishing up their activities for the day. Anxiously, he kept looking over his shoulders, as if someone might be following him. He glanced all around him as well; there was nothing, nothing except ordinary folk living ordinary lives. Certainly, at least, nothing to be alarmed about. Sighing in relief, Vash relaxed and lowered his gaze to his feet. _Nothing, _he thought, _Nothing at all. _He laughed now. _Man,_ _have I been acting silly! After all, it's absolutely ridiculous…what an imagination I have!_

Yet, when Vash looked up, there he was, standing less that a foot in front of him and smirking knowingly; there stood Nicholas D. Wolfwood. Instinctively, Vash jumped back, loosing his balancing and landing on his behind. With a shaky finger, he pointed up at the dead man and stammered, "You – you – you – you…"

"Hey, is that any way to greet an old friend?" Wolfwood asked.

At this, Vash suddenly bursted out, "You're supposed to be dead!"

"Who says I'm not?" Wolfwood replied, adding thoughtfully, "Although, now that you mention it, technically I'm _not _supposed to be dead." However, when he looked down to hear Vash's response, he saw his friend had already scurried away, strolling very fast in the opposite direction. "Hey, wait!" Wolfwood called out.

"There are no such thing as ghosts, there are no such things as ghosts…" Vash kept repeating to himself softly when Wolfwood popped up by his side, "Ack! Stop doing that! You nearly scared me half to death!"

"Well, stop running away, will you?"

"Fine," Vash agreed. After a silent moment, he glanced over at Wolfwood with quizzical eyes, "Are you really…?" Vash didn't finish, but hesitantly stuck out his hand to touch him, only for it to go through. "You really are a ghost…"

"Don't freak out so much; it's no big deal, really," Wolfwood explained nonchalantly.

"But, shouldn't you be in Heaven or something?"

"That's a story unto itself, my friend," Wolfwood answered, "One that I've yet to entirely figure out myself. However, I'm not hear to talk about me – yet, anyway. First, we've got your problems to deal with."

"My problems?"

"For starters, are you crazy leaving a nut-job like Knives in your home?"

Vash immediately grew defensive; "Hey, he's my brother - he's not a nut-job!"

"He tried to _kill _you. Not to mention countless others! What makes you think he won't try to hurt you again - or the girls?"

"He wouldn't – he hasn't tried to hurt anyone at all since I brought him here."

"That's because he's been in a coma, you needle-noggin!"

"Well, maybe I know something about mercy and compassion! What am I supposed to do, just kill him?"

"Well…" Wolfwood trailed off, giving the notion a genuine thought.

"Thou shall not kill, remember! What kind of angel are you, anyway!" Suddenly, Vash noticed that those townspeople in the near vicinity had began watching as the tiff unfolded, and they stared directly at Vash with confused expressions. Vash frowned, growing red, and said in a much quieter voice, "They can't see or hear you, can they?"

Wolfwood shook his head. "Nope, not at all."

Vash let out a nervous laugh and turned to the crowd, "Nothing to see here, people, nothing at all…" Reluctantly, the people complied and slowly went back to what they had been doing before. Vash began walking once more, Wolfwood close behind. "You are making me look crazy!" He whispered harshly.

"Hey, you don't need my help with that," Wolfwood said, and then noted, "And, just so you know, I never said I was an angel."

"Will you stop following me! And talking to me! Because then I have to talk back and it looks like I'm talking to no one at all! I don't even know if I am really talking to you."

"Don't you have faith and all that crap? Besides, is that anyway for you to show gratitude for the person who saved your life?"

"What are you talking about?"

"How quickly we forget…" Wolfwood remarked with a shake of his head.

Vash fell into deep thought when he remembered his fight with Knives, the memory of him lying on the ground, Knives hovering over him, ready to kill. It was then he had heard Wolfwood's voice, Wolfwood yelling at him, telling him it was right next to him. "You mean that was…?"

Wolfwood nodded, "Yes, that was really me. Funny how I didn't freak you out then." Before Vash could respond, however, Wolfwood went on, "Anyhow, I was right then and I'm right now. Listen, Vash, I don't have a lot of time at the moment, so I'll get to the point; Knives is going to wake up and soon. To be honest, I'm getting the feeling that it's too late, but you should be prepared anyway."

"Prepared – prepared for what?"

"Something big is coming and Knives will have something do with it."

"Something…bad?"

"Yes. Weird things are going to begin to happen; I bet they already have. Definitely try to keep an eye on Knives, but he's not going to have the answers we need. You'll be looking for someone else for that…" Wolfwood let out a hearty laugh then "Wow, don't I sound cryptic! To be honest, I'd tell you more, but as I have no idea what's going on myself…" He let out a weaker laugh as he concluded, as he scratched the back of his head. "Anyhow, see what you can do with that, needle-noggin!"

"Hey, but – " Vash began, but Wolfwood was gone, leaving Vash alone. _What am I suppose to do with that…_he asked himself, with hopelessness and confusion hanging on his thoughts.

"Mr. Vash!" suddenly came the voice of a frantic Millie Robinson. By her side was Meryl Stryfe, who also called out, "Vash!" He immediately looked over to them, and the two, having spotted him standing alone in the street ran quickly over to him, faces filled with dread.

"Vash, there you are," Meryl started, out of breath. "Knives is gone!"

"Gone?"

"We're so sorry," Millie said, "We came home after picking up some things for dinner, and when I went in to check on him, he was gone! We couldn't find him anywhere."

Vash grew very serious and quiet, as he thought, _It's just as Wolfwood said..._ "Vash? Vash?" Meryl said, growing concerned by his silence, "Vash say something!"

"It's just as Wolfwood said…" Vash repeated, this time out loud. His gaze then fell on to an unfamiliar figure, in the distance; he was wearing a bright red jacket. _Hmm…?_

"What? What do you mean?" Meryl questioned, worriedly and puzzled.

Snapping out of his trance, Vash said, "Nothing, I – I'll go find him."

"Then I'm going with you," Meryl concluded, Millie nodding in agreement.

"No, you both should stay here. Weird things are going to begin to happen. They already have."

"Weird things…?" Meryl repeated.

"Mr. Vash," Millie spoke up now, "You can't do this alone!"

Vash, thinking Wolfwood, let out a dry laugh, "Somehow I get the unfortunate feeling that I won't…" He gently pushed past them as they exchanged confused glances, and said to them with a small wave of his hand, "I'll be back soon!" Vash the Stampede was then on his way, heading in the direction where he had just seen the mysterious figure only moments before.

But the stranger in the red jacket was nowhere in sight.


	5. Chapter 4

Hi all! Yes, I know it's been awhile; school has kept me super busy. Thankfully, though, the semester's over and summer's here, so maybe now I'll be able to finish a few of my fan fiction projects. I want to thank everyone, though, who has read and who has reviewed - I really appreciate your interest and feedback, and I'm so glad you've been enjoying my work.

Anyhow, just out of curiousity, what does everyone think of me posting this in the Trigun section? I keep flip-flopping back and forth about where I should put this - Trigun, Outlaw Star, Cowboy Bebop, Lupin - and I'm not really that sure. I don't want to stick in the "Anime Crossovers" section, simply because I feel like a lot of fics get lost there, and I don't want to have to make fans of either of the abovementioned shows have to go fishing around. Then I thought I could bounce the fic around from board to board, but I wasn't sure what the policy for that was, how that affected story reviews, how it would affect story alerts for those who have it, etc. I wish I could just post crossovers inall sections that apply, but unfortunately, it doesn't seem like that's allowed. Anyway, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Now, without further delay, I give you the latest installment of _Worlds of Confusion_! Enjoy!

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_Blue Heaven, 3663_

"Listen, just try not to stand out too much," Jigen awkwardly instructed with a frown; even in their own time, the samurai sword-wielding Goemon never did seem to fit in. At least, though, wherever the heck it was they were, _everyone_ seemed to stand out. Glancing around the bar, all he could see was rough looking people – well, _mostly _people – carrying around all sorts of odd gadgets that Jigen had never seen before. "We've got to figure out how the hell to get out of this friggin' place."

"Agreed," Goemon concurred, appearing much more composed than his counterpart. He added, "However, we should first try to figure out what this place is exactly."

"I don't even want to _know _what this place is," Jigen muttered.

"Well, perhaps then, how we came to be in such a strange place," Goemon suggested.

"Yeah, I guess that could help," Jigen admitted. The two friends then grew silent, pondering for several minutes how on earth they winded up in such a foreign place. "Damn it!" Jigen finally exclaimed, exasperated. "This doesn't make any friggin' sense! How on earth did we go from being in Paris to waking up in this God damn place? Unless…"

Both Jigen and Goemon exchanged knowing glances. "You don't think?" Goemon questioned.

"Well, he's not here and she's not here," Jigen pointed out.

"But why would Lupin and Fujiko do something like this?" Goemon questioned skeptically.

"I guess it's a pretty elaborate set up if they're just trying to keep us out of new heist," Jigen conceded, "not to mention I can't imagine Lupin ever cutting us out like that, even if it was for that friggin' broad."

"Could it be Zenigata?" Goemon offered.

"Nah, it's not his style," Jigen said.

"It could be a dream."

"No way, man. This is all too real."

"As many dreams are when you're experiencing them," Goemon pressed. "But for all we know we could both still be in our hotel room in Paris."

"But we can't both be having the _same_ friggin' dream at the _same_ time," Jigen argued.

"Who says we are? You might simply be a figment of my imagination. A very convincing one, yes, but a figment nonetheless."

"That's ridiculous."

"More ridiculous than this being real?"

Jigen let out an aggravated sigh. "Okay, fine. But who the hell says that this is your dream? It could very well be mine, you know."

"Because I am currently completely aware of my inner self. If I was just part of your dream, then I couldn't have that sort of sense of identity."

Jigen rolled his eyes. "That doesn't prove anything. I can just be dreaming you saying all that crap."

"But you're not."

"How do you know?"

"Because like I said, I am aware of – "

"This isn't getting us anywhere," Jigen interrupted, "especially not any closer to getting the hell out of this place."

"I suppose you're right," Goemon frowned. Both fell quiet once more, growing more frustrated and more lost as to what to do.

Finally, Jigen exclaimed. "Damn it all to hell, I need a drink!" Turning sharply, he went to march over to the bar only to collide accidentally with a very tall someone. He began to mutter, "Sorry…" as he looked up to see who he ran into; what he saw was a six foot seven Silgrian hovering over him. He stared up at what looked to him like an anthropomorphized bird with wide eyes, his hat falling back to reveal his gaze, as the creature, having been facing the opposite direction, turned its head 180 degrees to look down at him. "Uh, excuse me…" he stammered, backing away.

"Just try to be more careful next time," the Silgrian said, before adding, "You know, there's something funny looking about you…." Jigen, unable to believe that such a creature was remarking about how _he _seemed "funny looking," did not say anything in response. "Oh, my apologies," the Silgrian then stated, "I mean no offense. Good day to you." It then turned his neck around and proceeded on with his business.

"That was…weird…" A stunned Goemon uttered, standing by his friend's side.

Jigen nodded. "I really think I could use that drink now…."

* * *

A short while later, Goemon and Jigen had found themselves a booth, and Jigen had gotten himself a drink, Goemon refusing after finding out that the mysterious place had never heard of his precious sake, let alone had it. What was worse was that the two had to resort to pick-pocketing, which had been way below their standards for quite some time, since they didn't have a clue about what kind of currency was being used. "We've got no choice," Jigen concluded, finishing his drink, "We're just going to _have _to talk to one of these people." Goemon nodded gravely, realizing that they had very little options. Clearing his throat, Jigen then bravely called to one of the relatively normal looking waitresses, "Hey, excuse me…" 

"Can I help you sir?" the bubbly girl asked, prancing over. "Do you need another drink?"

"No…er…actually, we'd kind of like to know where this place is," Jigen explained.

"Huh?" The waitress blinked, puzzled.

"Like, where are we?" Jigen tried again. "What country are we in?"

"Country…?" The waitress repeated with a baffled frown. She then offered, "We're on Blue Heaven - is that what you're asking…?"

"No, not the name of the bar – "

"Oh," the girl perked up, "you want to know the name of the bar!"

Goemon's eyes narrowed quizically. "You mean, 'Blue Heaven' isn't the name of this bar?"

"No," she laughed, "Blue Heaven is the name of this giant space station you're on!"

"Space station…?" Both Goemon and Jigen exchanged dumfounded looks.

"Not to mention a safe haven for all outlaws," she added.

"You mean, like, we're in outer space?" Jigen questioned.

"I guess you could say that…" The waitress frowned once again in perplexity.

"_With spaceships?_" Jigen furthered his interrogation.

"Uh, yeah…"

"And aliens?" Jigen continued to question.

"Uh-huh," the girl nodded.

"Can you tell us, miss, how we can get back to Earth from here?" Goemon now asked.

"Earth? Oh, I've heard about that place! Isn't it like 50 light years away or something?"

"No, it's – never mind," Jigen answered with a sigh. "Could you at least tell us the friggin' year?"

With this, she eyed both men suspiciously and warily replied, "It's 3663….but, I, uh, have to go wait tables so…." She trailed off uneasily before slipping away, leaving the two master thieves speechless.

At last, Jigen declared, "There's no God damn way it's friggin' 3663!"

"This is quite distressing…" Goemon commented with a frown.

"It doesn't even make sense, if you think about it," Jigen went on, crossing his arms bitterly. "Almost two thousand years and they're using the _same _calendar?"

"Well, at least something's the same…" Goemon remarked, before thoughtfully saying, "Although, it could also be 3663 on a _different _calendar."

Jigen groaned; this was just too much, even after all he'd been through being Lupin III's right-hand man for so many years. "We've got to get the God damn hell out of here and back home – I don't think I can take anymore of this."

Suddenly, a very loud, female voice rang through the bar; "Hey, how dare you walk away from a Ctarl-Ctarl like that!" Both Jigen and Goemon looked over to two booths behind them, where an angry-looking, feline-ish woman was standing up and yelling to a very nervous looking man desperately trying to scurry away. "I was in the middle of talking to you!"

"Does she have...cat ears?" Goemon asked.

"Yep..." Jigen muttered, finding himself no longer that surprised to see such a strange thing.

"Don't you know who we are?" the woman continued. "We're the ones who found _the_ Galactic Leyline! We have the right to charge you anything we want! You should feel _privileged _that we'd even consider taking your pathetic job!"

"Just forget it, Aisha..." a redheaded man now spoke up from where he sat beside her in the booth.

"But, Gene!" The woman – Aisha – protested, slamming her hands on the table. "He can't treat us like that!"

"It doesn't matter – he's not going to hire us. Next time I take Suzuka with me."

"Well, if you just gave me a few minutes with him outside..."

Gene, though, ignored her, muttering to himself, "Maybe Jim's right...maybe we _are _asking too much."

"Nonsense, Gene!" Aisha stated, placing her hands on her hips. "We found the Galactic Leyline, didn't we? We should be a hot commodity! Besides, who else offers the valuable services of a Ctarl-Ctarl, hmm? If they don't want to fork over our fee, then they can just find some two-bit hacks to do their stupid jobs! We'll just find somebody more respectful to work for."

"But we're _not_ finding anyone and now we're in the red."

"You listen to Jim too much, Gene," Aisha insisted. "It's like I always say, you've got to stand by your guns. Sure, business might be slow _now_, but it's only a phase. Soon enough, they'll all be crawling to us!"

"They _should_, considering we busted our asses to get to the Galactic Leyline. For the greatest treasure in the universe, it sure didn't help us much..." Gene trailed off, before finally rising to his feet as well. "Let's just get back to the Outlaw Star. Maybe once we get back to Sentinel III, we'll find some work."

"Fine," Aisha reluctantly agreed and the two made their exit.

Jigen and Goemon, having observed this conversation, shared intrigued glances. "I don't know about you, but I'm getting a gut feeling." Goemon raised an eyebrow. "Listen, now I know it might sound crazy, but I'd bet my hat that Lupin will be after that Galactic Leyline, whatever it is."

"Your _hat_?"

"It's a nice hat," Jigen said defensively, pulling the front brim further down. "That's not the point, though. We've got to find Lupin and get the hell back to our own time."

"But how do we even know if Lupin's here?"

"If we're here, he's got to be here somewhere," Jigen reasoned. "We're else would he have gone?"

"Perhaps, but I'm still not convinced. Still, personally speaking, stealing the greatest treasure in the universe is a very tempting proposition, even if it isn't _our _universe. However, temptation and speculation do not make the best foundation for building one's crucial decisions on."

"Listen, I said it was a _gut _feeling – we find the Galactic Leyline, we find Lupin, or at least the friggin' way out of this friggin' place."

"But where do we begin?" Goemon asked. Both their eyes gravitated to the door, where Gene Starwind and Aisha Clan-Clan had exited moments before.

_

* * *

Time and Place Unknown... _

_Am I...dead? _Spike Spiegel wondered. He certainly _felt _dead. There was white light all around him – warm, familiar light. He didn't actually see the light, though, nor did he seem to have a body that could feel it. Instead, he just understood it to be there and willingly succumbed to it. And despite the nothingness, he found the surrounding light to be bizarrely peaceful and soothing. However, Spike was beginning to suspect that what he initially thought was nothingness was actually _everything_ all at once.

He could hear things, see things, although he did not experience anything with his ears or eyes; he just _knew_, as if it was part of him. He was with a blonde-haired man in a long red coat, desperately searching for someone. And he was right beside an outlaw and his motley crew, as well as the two thieves who were following them closely. He knew the mysterious woman with the exceptionally large bounty on her head, and all those she was eluding, too.

And then he felt _her_. She was with another man, a religiously devout man. Yet, this man was really no longer completely a man anymore. Instead, his existence hung in limbo, shared by both the dead and the living, the body and the spirit. And although Spike could no longer see her, or touch her, or hear her humming to him, or even remember a single worldly thing about her, he knew she was beautiful. Her sudden presence interrupted everything – his breath-taking peace, his overwhelming understanding, his remarkable freedom – and slowly he felt himself returning to his old self, to an inferior self, to the self that was known as Spike Spiegel. _Julia..._

But then, the world stopped yanking Spike back. It was only for a moment, but it felt like it lasted forever. There was nothing – true nothingness, so much so that even Spike seemed to cease to exist. Yet, from this darkness a figure slowly came into being, merging with Spike's fading entity. The figure, though, was not ethereal, but entirely secular; it was as if a window in the spiritual realm had been open to reveal the figure in the material one. It had a gender, being male, and a body, which was tall and thin. He had thick sideburns and a small semi-afro. On his back was a red suit jacket.

His name was Lupin the Third, and while he was but a mortal man, there was something strikingly eternal about him.


End file.
